To Zoe (Compilation)

Review by Thomas Glorieux:

OK, what is To Zoe and why is Zimmer involved in this? First of all, To Zoe is one of the many bootlegs floating around on the market, a compilation capturing the broad assignments of Zimmer, Mancina (like in Follow Your Dreams Volume 1) or the whole Media Ventures crew. Secondly, it is one compilation score that presents mixes, not portions of score. So to understand and like what this score gives, you have to be first of all open to mixes and several slight changes in score. Secondly, if you want your favorite portion of the score to end, don't bother because in many occasions you will face horror when your particular favorite moment is missing on the mix. And thirdly, if you are an avid Zimmer fan and you have every score listed on this album, then you will find absolutely nothing new because it is all score that can be found on the original release, except for the voiceless portion of Toys (which doesn't even capture the main theme of Zimmer), so I'm not complaining about that. To Zoe is a fun album and gives you entertainment but will not see daylight in my CD player like several other compilation scores out there, much to my disappointment.

Because what I was expecting was to find flawless mixes that gave you the best parts of the score. In a way, this is true but the mixing and editing is so unpredictable that during a certain moment, you are directed to a whole other part of that score / song. Why I mention now song is because during Muppet Treasure Island, we are facing this exact maneuver. First you have the main theme and just like the original album it goes on to the song 'Shiver my Timbers', but this exact song is edited three times meaning you hear a portion and then if follows with a portion but 30 seconds later, all making it harder to enjoy. Many tracks shift from one portion to another and this is not distracting to the point that you are boring yourself, but more making you a bit on alert, never knowing when and where the mix / edit will face itself. Of course, To Zoe was made for giving production houses or company's a glimpse of Zimmer's score material. The mixes are made by Zimmer himself and aren't distracting, but they are of course a burden when you are just witnessing your finest moment. Backdraft, for instance. You are waiting for 7 minutes to hear the majestic finale track and just when the theme is about to play, it stops and moves to the next score. This is of course sad and will no doubt put peoples patience's on the test.

This almost happens with each track, the exceptions are First Born which has the exact same track as on Follow Your Dreams Volume 1 and Toys, which is also spotted on that compilation and doesn't offer a mix or edit. Several things to mention though: first the best mix and edit comes on the name of The Rock which almost offers a part from any score track and is the most enjoyable edit job on the case. Secondly, a strange ending is heard on The Lion King, which offers instead of an original ending a French recording, when they end the last seconds of the track 'King of Pride Rock', very weird is this. And finally, of To Zoe there have been reportedly 20 to 30 albums released of which I haven't got one, since this is a recording. So To Zoe is a typical Zimmer album, giving you almost each cool theme of the movie it accompanies (which makes it unique and interesting for those who know nothing of his work). But as a listen it is harder to enjoy, the moments are glued nicely together but aren't rewarding at the end, even though some of them are quite easy to enjoy. It was released for a reason but it isn't the thing I would recommend because a mix is not a track, this one doesn't stop when it needs to, it stops when it wants to.

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Tracks

Single Disc

1. Crimson Tide (10.21)

2. Rain Man (5.00)

3. Beyond Rangoon (4.57)

4. First Born (2.50)

5. Broken Arrow (7.31)

6. Muppet Treasure Island (5.57)

7. Backdraft (7.40)

8. The Lion King (9.03)

9. Toys (3.15)

10. The Rock (8.32)

11. Point Of No Return (3.25)

12. Millennium (4.15)

Total Length: 72.54

The use of artwork or photos is posted for non profitable reasons

=== Link to Composer Site: Hans Zimmer ===